by TSNYC » Wed Jul 27, 2022 3:16 pm
Waste carting company with mob ties charged over JFK terminal work
By Ari Ephraim Feldman New York City
PUBLISHED 5:29 PM ET Jul. 27, 2022
Local authorities are bringing charges against three companies hired as part of a JFK airport construction project in connection to one of the firms operating without the proper registration from the city.
That firm, LMC Trucking Corp., had its license application denied by the city in 2020 over alleged ties to the Gambino crime family. LMC was subcontracted by two main contractors on the project.
Delta Airlines paid the companies to haul demolition debris as part of an effort to modernize JFK’s Terminal 4.
At a news conference Wednesday, Mayor Eric Adams said the charges would help protect against corruption and organized crime involvement in construction industries.
“We’ve been there before, and we’re not going back again,” Adams said.
The companies face charges from the Queens District Attorney’s office related to operating a waste trading business without proper registration from the city agency that oversees the industry, the Business Integrity Commission. The charges are punishable by up to six months in prison for the business operators and thousands of dollars in fines.
The BIC denied LMC Trucking’s application for registration in 2020, citing court testimony from William Cioffi, whose wife runs the company, in which he said he is connected to the Gambino crime family. Cioffi said in the testimony that he went “on record” with the family in order to help the firm get more trucking jobs, according to the BIC’s written decision denying the company’s carting license application.
“In fact, William Cioffi admitted that he paid a member of the Gambino crime family $2,000 at Christmastime to go on record with him,” BIC’s decision reads. “The individual he paid was Michael Carbone – who, until his death in September 2018, was a ‘caporegime’ (also known as a ‘capo’ or ‘captain’) in the Gambino crime family.”
Cioffi’s wife, Laura Cioffi, did not immediately respond to a message requesting comment.
In an emailed statement, Drake Castañeda, a spokesperson for Delta, said that the company was investigating the license issues.
“We thank the Port Authority Inspector General for bringing this to Delta’s attention, whereupon we took immediate action to remove the subcontractor without the appropriate BIC license from the project,” Castañeda said. “Delta Air Lines expects our contractors to carry the correct and current licenses, certifications and registrations on all our projects.”
The other two carting companies charged — Ferreira Construction Co. Inc., and Bond Civil & Utility Construction, Inc. — are not alleged to be connected to organized crime, and were the prime contractors on the project, Castañeda said.
He added that Ferreira and Bond were subject to background checks by the Port Authority.
Ferreira Construction and Bond Civil & Utility Construction did not respond to requests for comment.
The carting companies are not facing any other criminal charges. Delta has not been charged in relation to the missing carting licenses.
John Gay, inspector general for the Port Authority, which owns JFK’s land and administers the airport, said that the authority did not have oversight over the contract that brought LMC onto the project.
“I’m not suggesting it's anybody's fault here, besides the persons who are charged,” Gay said.
Waste carting company with mob ties charged over JFK terminal work
By Ari Ephraim Feldman New York City
PUBLISHED 5:29 PM ET Jul. 27, 2022
Local authorities are bringing charges against three companies hired as part of a JFK airport construction project in connection to one of the firms operating without the proper registration from the city.
That firm, LMC Trucking Corp., had its license application denied by the city in 2020 over alleged ties to the Gambino crime family. LMC was subcontracted by two main contractors on the project.
Delta Airlines paid the companies to haul demolition debris as part of an effort to modernize JFK’s Terminal 4.
At a news conference Wednesday, Mayor Eric Adams said the charges would help protect against corruption and organized crime involvement in construction industries.
“We’ve been there before, and we’re not going back again,” Adams said.
The companies face charges from the Queens District Attorney’s office related to operating a waste trading business without proper registration from the city agency that oversees the industry, the Business Integrity Commission. The charges are punishable by up to six months in prison for the business operators and thousands of dollars in fines.
The BIC denied LMC Trucking’s application for registration in 2020, citing court testimony from William Cioffi, whose wife runs the company, in which he said he is connected to the Gambino crime family. Cioffi said in the testimony that he went “on record” with the family in order to help the firm get more trucking jobs, according to the BIC’s written decision denying the company’s carting license application.
“In fact, William Cioffi admitted that he paid a member of the Gambino crime family $2,000 at Christmastime to go on record with him,” BIC’s decision reads. “The individual he paid was Michael Carbone – who, until his death in September 2018, was a ‘caporegime’ (also known as a ‘capo’ or ‘captain’) in the Gambino crime family.”
Cioffi’s wife, Laura Cioffi, did not immediately respond to a message requesting comment.
In an emailed statement, Drake Castañeda, a spokesperson for Delta, said that the company was investigating the license issues.
“We thank the Port Authority Inspector General for bringing this to Delta’s attention, whereupon we took immediate action to remove the subcontractor without the appropriate BIC license from the project,” Castañeda said. “Delta Air Lines expects our contractors to carry the correct and current licenses, certifications and registrations on all our projects.”
The other two carting companies charged — Ferreira Construction Co. Inc., and Bond Civil & Utility Construction, Inc. — are not alleged to be connected to organized crime, and were the prime contractors on the project, Castañeda said.
He added that Ferreira and Bond were subject to background checks by the Port Authority.
Ferreira Construction and Bond Civil & Utility Construction did not respond to requests for comment.
The carting companies are not facing any other criminal charges. Delta has not been charged in relation to the missing carting licenses.
John Gay, inspector general for the Port Authority, which owns JFK’s land and administers the airport, said that the authority did not have oversight over the contract that brought LMC onto the project.
“I’m not suggesting it's anybody's fault here, besides the persons who are charged,” Gay said.